A bus full of Karachi Nuclear Power Plant (Kanupp) employees narrowly escaped an IED attack near Mauripur, Karachi on Monday when the driver spotted the bomb and reversed the bus to safety. The 1.5kg remotely-detonated device exploded leaving a nearly one meter crater, and failed to detonate the 2.5kg anti-tank mine it was attached to. Bomb Disposal Squad members successfully defused the mine, and police are now looking for the unidentified terrorists responsible for the attack.[3]

On Monday, Karachi police arrested nine suspects for their involvement in a Lyari based gang associated with “several target killings.” In the operation, police raided several locations throughout Karachi, and seized dozens of weapons and drugs.[4]

Police in Fateh village, Peshwar, killed a suspected militant Sher Hassan after he opened fire on them during a routine patrol on Monday. Officials report that previous attempts to arrest Hassan had failed, and added that while no policemen were harmed in the incident, their van was badly damaged. Hassan was shot when police returned fire.[6]

On Monday, police in Sharafi Goth, Karachi re-arrested a man suspected of involvement in at least 30 “target killings” who had escaped from custody three days ago.[7]

An Ahle Sunnat Wal Jamaat (ASWJ) supporter was shot in northern Karachi in a targeted killing on Monday by two assailants on a motorcycle. Investigators suspect his death was part of a targeted assassination campaign against certain religious groups, including ASWJ.[9]

In an interview published Sunday, U.S. Secretary of Defense and Central Intelligence Agency Director (CIA) Leon Panetta explained that official CIA policy on drone strikes did not allow attacks when women and children would be at risk. Adding a caveat to that rule, citing the strike from August 2010 when a drone killed TTP commander Baitullah Mehsud and his wife, Panetta explained that strikes with collateral damage were permissible in “exceptional circumstances against very high-level terrorists.”[12]

Pak-Afghan Relations

On Monday, Pakistani Ambassador to the U.S. Sherry Rehman stated that Pakistan considers the Afghan peace process to be an “urgent priority.” Rehman’s comments come following the conclusion of a trilateral meeting between Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, Afghan President Hamid Karzai, and British Prime Minister David Cameron convened to address extremism and increase regional stability between the neighboring countries.[13]

Indo-Pak Relations

According to a report published by the New America Foundation on January 30th, 2013 examining Indo-Pak trade relations, the potential for trade between India and Pakistan is 10 times the current amount. The report examines the removal of tariff and non-tariff restrictions between India and Pakistan as well as the restrictive visa regimes and ineffective transportation system between the two countries. The report assesses that the current value of trade between the two countries could rise from its current level of $2 to 2.5 billion to approximately $20 to $50 billion.[14]

Kashmir

On Tuesday, the national holiday for Kashmiri solidarity, Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf reaffirmed that Pakistan will continue to seek a peaceful resolution to the Kashmir dispute. Ashraf also announced that Pakistan has introduced confidence building measures with India and supports discussions with the Indian government to resolve the dispute over the territory. Imran Khan, chief of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, vowed to resolve the Kashmir dispute if his party came to power. Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Saeed, however, urged India to withdraw from Kashmir and Chairman of the Special Committee of Parliament on Kashmir Maulana Fazlur Rehman citied the non-implementation of the United Nations Security Council’s resolution for Kashmir and proposed sanctions on India. Pakistani and Kashmiri citizens demonstrated at several entry points in Azad Jammu and Kashmir to show their plight.[15]

Election Commission of Pakistan

Members of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and other oppositional political parties marched on Monday from Parliament House to the office of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to protest against “fake electoral rolls” and “pre-poll rigging” and demanded that the Supreme Court’s ruling on electoral delimitation and voter verification be implemented.[16]

Supreme Court

The Supreme Court of Pakistan rejected the National Accountability Bureau’s (NAB) request for a larger bench for the Rental Power Project’s (RPP) implementation case hearing on Tuesday. The implementation hearing is delayed until the murder investigation of a NAB officer investigating the case is complete. Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry denied the request stating that since the case had already been concluded, a larger bench is unnecessary.[17]

On Monday, the Pakistani Supreme Court granted National Accountability Bureau (NAB) chief Fasih Bokhari until February 12th to find counsel. Bokhari is being charged with contempt-of-court for a controversial letter he sent to President Zardari.[18]